“You know they are smarter than you if they are asking the RIGHT questions.”

Again, it was one of those things he said that I didn’t understand until much later. What are “the right questions?” I asked myself over and over again until one day it hit me-the right questions are those that you can’t find an answer for immediately on your own.

Think about it, if you’re asked “are you thirsty?” you can almost immediately respond yes or no. You didn’t have to think, right? If asked about your job or things that you do every day, you could probably answer very quickly. These are the “no effort” and “no challenge” questions. Your not using any part of your mind that requires you to REALLY think. If all you have around you are people asking you what you already know, then you aren’t growing.

You don’t want to surround yourself with people who ask questions you already have the answer to. If you are training, on boarding, and developing, then yes, you should expect to be asked lots of questions. But if absolutely none of those cause you to think, then you’re not being challenged. REAL growth for you (and perhaps for your organization) you want those who ask questions that require you to dig deep.

As a matter of fact, if you have someone who asks questions that make you somewhat annoyed and perhaps even frustrated, it is likely these feelings are because you don’t have the answer and absolutely no clue where to get the answer. Guess what? You have the right person sitting in front of you. Sounds insane I know, but trust me. It is exactly what you need for growth.

When you are digging deep to find and develop a solution, you are growing. When you are growing you are Illuminating yourself and others.